Community conservation at a crossroads in Khonoma

Over the last decade Khonoma, a village in northeastern India inhabited by the Angami, one of the indigenous or tribal people of the state of Nagaland, has demonstrated a resolute will to conserve biodiversity and wildlife. By establishing and strengthening systems of natural resource management and conflict resolution, including through the development of the Khonoma Nature Conservation and Tragopan Sanctuary, the village is exemplifying a search for appropriate and sustainable development. All this is embedded in the traditional ethos of the village, coupled with an openness to experiment with new technologies and ideas from outside the village. The results are impressive enough to warrant more attention for this historically well-known warrior village, this time in the annals of India’s environmental movement. However, despite many successes the village today stands at crossroads as it struggles to find incentives that will sustain conservation in the long run whilst maintaining its relevance for the local population.

Original Title: India: Community conservation at a crossroadsFirst Published by IUCN in Protected Landscapes and Wild Biodiversity, Volume 3, in the Values of Protected Landscapes and Seascapes Series, Gland, Switzerland, edited by Dudley N and S Stolton, in 2012Contact: Neema Pathak